-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Miami is well known for its tropical weather , retiree community and Cuban-American population , but not so much as an international art hub . Luckily for downtown Miami , billionaire real-estate developer Jorge Pérez wants to change that .

The real estate developer and art lover donated $ 40 million , half made up from his private art collection , to the Pérez Art Museum Miami , known as PAMM , one of the few major institutions in the United States with a Hispanic name .

That 's certainly one way to put Miami on the map .

Ancient village found in Miami

Downtown Miami is in the midst of a major revitalization : David Beckham is hoping to build a stadium there for his recently announced Miami soccer team . Within the art world , the international art and fashion extravaganza Art Basel , which has taken place in Miami Beach for more than a decade , is considered to be the country 's leading art fair with 130 international museum and institutions attracting tens of thousands of people to the five-day event .

Jorge Pérez hopes his museum will help take Miami to the next level .

`` Cultural institutions have played a critical role in the growth of Miami , with this museum as a leading example , '' Pérez said in an interview with CNN .

Before Pérez was known as the `` Condo King of South Florida , '' he started as an urban planner , focusing on low-income housing developments .

Then , he co-founded a real estate development firm , The Related Group of Florida , working in high-end condo construction in the 1980s .

In 2005 , TIME magazine named him one of the top 25 most influential Hispanics in the United States .

The 64-year-old billionaire also made Forbes list of 400 richest Americans several times , the only Latino immigrant to do so .

Born in Argentina to Cuban parents , Pérez grew up in Colombia before migrating to Miami as a teen . His lifelong passion for Latin American art stems from his upbringing .

In his early 20s , he started collecting paintings by Roberto Matta , Diego Rivera , Wifredo Lam , and Joaquin Torres-Garcia . Now , 110 works selected by the museum from Pérez 's private collection are available for everyone to see inside the three-story , 200,000-square-foot museum , designed by the Pritzker Prize-winning Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron .

Walk inside the $ 220 million building and you will be surrounded by tall glass windows that are said to be the largest hurricane impact resistant in the world . Hanging from every side of the museum are 70 self-watering hydroponic gardens , designed by French landscape artist Patrick Blanc .

The museum focuses on international art of the 20th and 21st centuries , and is currently showing Chinese artist-activist Ai Weiwei 's `` According to What ? '' collection .

PAMM is one of the main attractions in what was known as Bicentennial Park , now Museum Park -- which will also house the Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science , set to open in 2015 .

The Pérez Art Museum had a smooth opening last year except for one slight hiccup : naming it .

While the majority of board members voted in favor of naming the museum after Pérez , four resigned in protest . It seems they had their heart set on the `` Miami Art Museum . ''

That 's because $ 100 million of the $ 167 million raised was city and county taxpayer money and the city of Miami donated the waterfront land where PAMM sits . Some of the board members argued the name of the museum should represent the city 's central art museum .

`` I can not speak for others . However , the great majority of the board was supportive . On a board of 47 , 43 voted in favor of the renaming , '' Pérez said .

Pérez has been involved with the museum since well before the building project began and he said he is honored the board chose to recognize him in that way .

`` I think most people want to be remembered with the causes they feel worthwhile and helped promote , '' Pérez said .

It seemed odd that PAMM received its share of strife for naming it after donor when just a few years ago the Miami Science Museum 's name was changed to the Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science after a generous donor who gave $ 35 million to construct the new museum in Museum Park .

`` The name change has been extremely well received by the community . Patricia and Phillip Frost are very well-liked people and they symbolize what we 're about , '' said Gillian Thomas , president and CEO of Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science .

When it comes to naming rights , perhaps Miami takes its art more seriously than science .

`` People have opinions about art , whereas science is a bit more concrete , so there would n't be backlash for naming a building after a donor , '' Thomas said .

But , she points out , naming Miami 's art museum after Pérez carries `` a sense of pride '' for the Hispanic community , even though his art donation `` does n't represent a collection . ''

`` Jorge Pérez is the first major donor from the Hispanic community , '' Thomas said .

Other American art museums have been named after donors , like The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles , and have n't stirred any controversy .

`` While people may not agree on a name , '' Thomas said , `` everyone can see that downtown Miami is quickly becoming a hub for science and art , which means donations are needed . ''

So far that does n't seem to be a problem for the Pérez Art Museum ; it has reached the 90 % mark in its $ 220 million capital campaign .

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The new Pérez Art Museum Miami was named after billionaire donor Jorge Pérez

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It 's part of a bigger revitalization of downtown Miami

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Pérez : Museum is `` a leading example '' of cultural institutions helping revitalize Miami

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The $ 220M art museum is part of downtown Miami 's goal to become an international art hub